Common Name - Deciduous Holly

Latin Name - Ilex Serrata

Flowering Period - Summer (June/July)

Care

Although not grown for its flowers, this must be included here because without flowers, you don't get berries, which is probably the main reason for growing this plant. Purchased in 1998, the previous owner had been working towards bringing the ramification inwards - something that I have continued to do. The plant is quite responsive to autumn pruning, although I changed my technique somewhat after reading an article in a magazine. I used to prune back to two good buds, but found that sometimes the tree would shed the shoot completely. The article suggested pruning in the autumn to three or more buds, and then pruning back to two in spring. I tried it this year, and I feel I had a better success rate, so I shall continue with this practice in future.

This plant has a couple of holes in the trunk that look like a borer beetle has emerged. I think that these are simply where the tree was fast grown and then pruned without any treatment of the wound. I have cut back to the cambium a few times now, and the holes are closing over. I do put a powdered insecticide in just before I cover the hole, just in case anything has decided to take up residence.

As suggested above, this plant is grown for the bright coral red berries that it retains after leaf drop. They do seem to be a temptation for blackbirds, so if you wish to enjoy them for longer, it may be necessary to protect from them. Apart from that, I find the tree very easy to grow, and quite responsive to my efforts to improve ramification.

The tree with berries in the first year.

I prune for structure in the spring just as the buds swell, and also take any opportunities to improve ramification at this time. I will then allow everything to grow until late spring, when I will simply stop any shoot that extends beyond the desired shape. This will only mean taking the last leaf or two from the tip of the shoot. I then await the flowers, which are many in number. The one problem with the next step is that unless the flowers are pollinated, they will not produce berries, and each plant is only a single sex. You only get berries on a female plant, but you need a male plant to fertilize them. Both male and female flowers are very small, only 0.5 cms. across, and are noticeably different. The female flowers have a distinct ovule and six petals, while the male flowers have several stamens and only four petals.

Female Flowers	Male Flowers

I was fortunate enough to be given three male plants, which I stand around the female. I don't know whether they are pollinated by wind or insects, but given the right conditions lots of berries will form. (I have noticed this year that ants love the nectar. Since they do not seem to have the usual accompanying aphids, I am allowing them to stay - they may even pollinate the plants).

(Addendum to original article: the ants did indeed pollinate the flowers - I must attempt to get them to do it next year!)

A good year for berries!

Since this plant flowers so late, I have difficulty deciding whether to feed heavily before flowering while the plant is growing, or do I withhold feed until after flowers? Generally I feed heavily before, and remove it just as the first flowers open. I then feed again after the berries have set. The crop of berries has been disappointing for the last couple of years, but I am not sure why.

The tree is quite vigorous, and dries out fast. As a result the leaves get somewhat scorched towards the end of the summer, and it may be that the tree is protecting itself by dropping some of the fruit. It may also be that the feed I give toward to latter part of the year is stimulating growth instead of fruit. I am trying to correct the leaf scorching first to identify the cause, but this is a very greedy plant, and it is not easy to keep up with its requirement for water. I will modify the soil structure next time I repot in an attempt to retain moisture for longer.

When purchased, the tree was in an unglazed Japanese pot (see picture) that I felt did not do it justice. The shape was acceptable, but the colour was very drab for such an eye-catching tree. The current pot was commissioned from Walsall Studio Ceramics, and has a high gloss dark blue glaze with a turquoise under-glaze that seeps through where the blue is thinner. It enhances the colour of the berries quite dramatically. I found the glaze so suitable for flowering trees that I commissioned six different pots in various shapes, all with the same glaze.

The tree as purchased.